A Profiler's Case for Seduction - By Carla Cassidy Page 0,33

head to look up at him, he took her mouth with his, plundering, exploring. She reciprocated, winding her arms around his neck and pressing more closely against him.

The kiss seemed to last a lifetime and yet wasn’t long enough, would never be long enough. It was she who broke it and stepped back from him, her eyes sparkling overly bright and her breathing coming too quickly.

“I want you, Dora. I haven’t said those words to a woman for a very long time.”

She closed her eyes, as if finding his words almost painful to hear. “I want you, too.” The words were a mere whisper. She looked at him once again. “But I can’t do this, Mark. I don’t want us to become lovers. It will just complicate things between us and make them messy.” She took a step backward, as if needing to physically distance herself from him.

“I don’t want to lose you as a friend,” she continued, her gaze not meeting his. “I know, I’m being selfish. I want to talk to you. I want to spend time with you, but I’m afraid of making love with you. Somehow, someway, that kind of a relationship has always screwed me up and I can’t screw up now...I just can’t.”

“And I don’t want you to,” Mark replied, despite the disappointment that slowly drained out of him, taking with it his desire to possess her intimately.

She glanced up at him, her eyes holding such misery he felt it in his soul. “I want you, but it won’t be long and you’ll be back to your real life in Dallas, and I have my school to finish and a life to begin. Is it too much to ask for your friendship and nothing more?” She bit her bottom lip as she waited for his response.

“Dora, I don’t want to take from you any more than you’re comfortable giving.” He wanted to reach out for her again; instead, he shoved his hands in his jacket pockets. “I like spending time with you, I love seeing your beautiful smile. We can be friends until it’s time for me to leave. We can remain friends after I leave here, if that’s what you want.”

Her features brightened and she released a sigh of relief. “I just want you to understand that my decision not to have a physical relationship with you has nothing to do with you and everything to do with me.”

This time he did step toward her and stroked a hand down the side of her face in reassurance. “I get it, Dora, and I’m okay with it.”

Minutes later as he stepped out of her house he drew in a deep breath of the night air, hoping to chase away the scent of her that lingered in his head.

He liked her intelligence, her laughter and her ability to keep him outside his own head. But he’d like to have it all—not just those things, but her passion and her desire, as well.

Still, if he couldn’t have it all, he’d take what she was willing to give because he couldn’t imagine his time here in Vengeance without her as a part of it.

What he wondered more than anything was, what had happened in her past that made her so wary of allowing herself any physical pleasure? What had her ex-husbands done to her that had made her so afraid of love?

Chapter 7

It was just after ten the next morning when Mark and Richard headed out to the north side of town where Troy Young lived. At the briefing that morning Mark had told the other agents about Andrew Peterson and the possible affair with Melinda, but everyone seemed to believe that Troy was their man. By the time the briefing was finished he feared that the information about Andrew Peterson and Melinda had been lost in the shuffle.

“I feel like nobody was listening to me today,” Mark said as he rolled down the passenger window of the car to allow in some of the cool, fresh air. “You’re the only one who has taken my theory about Melinda halfway seriously.”

“You know why nobody was paying attention to your information today,” Richard said. “We now have two strikes against Troy Young. If we can figure out if he ties into David Reed, then we’ve got somebody who is three for three in the motive department, and that makes Troy our most viable suspect.”

Mark heaved a deep sigh and focused out the side window. The day before, Joseph